Neurocognitive Disorders and HIV
HIV affects the body’s central and peripheral nervous systems and can eventually lead to impairment, including sensory nerve damage and neurocognitive disorders.
There is a growing number of clinicians and researchers focusing on the neurocognitive/neuropsychological health of people living with HIV. This field of study is often
referred to as “NeuroAIDS”.
The expanding NeuroAIDS field has led to tremendous advances in our understanding of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders and to improved diagnosis, care and treatment.
As compared to the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, modern diagnostic tests have been developed to better distinguish between mild cognitive impairment and more severe
impairments such as HIV-associated dementia. And advances in combination HIV antiretroviral medication regimens, which are more effective than old regimens at targeting
reservoirs of HIV in the central nervous system, have led to better clinical outcomes for people who have been diagnosed with an HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder.